It was a great card all around. I'm impressed with Shalarus; he needs to refine his strikikng but if he does he has the potential to be a beast. Hominick's arm bar was pretty slick too- I thought he was just going to get pounded out. I was happy to see Brown looking good, and I was thrilled that both Faber and Henderson were able to finish their opponents.
Tonight set the stage for some great match ups; Faber vs. Aldo has the makings of a classic and I can't wait to see the Cerrone-Henderson rematch. Of course, we get to see Bowles defend his title as well as the return of Torres before that. It's a great time to be a fight fan.

I figured Hominick was going to get pounded out as well. Reminds me of Sam Stout, usually spends all of his time trying to stay on his feet or get back to his feet and gets taken advantage of because of it. Unlike Stout, however, Hominick is showing the makings of some really good Guard work. This is the second time he has submitted someone who was suppose to steamroll him in the grappling.

As for Faber getting the title shot. Well, the two likeliest guys to get it would be Faber and Brown. Can't have both of them rematch again since Brown has beaten Faber twice already. Also, Aldo just beat Brown so an immediate title wasn't likely. I'd consider Faber #3 in the division right now. As such, it does make sense.

I figured Hominick was going to get pounded out as well. Reminds me of Sam Stout, usually spends all of his time trying to stay on his feet or get back to his feet and gets taken advantage of because of it. Unlike Stout, however, Hominick is showing the makings of some really good Guard work. This is the second time he has submitted someone who was suppose to steamroll him in the grappling.

As for Faber getting the title shot. Well, the two likeliest guys to get it would be Faber and Brown. Can't have both of them rematch again since Brown has beaten Faber twice already. Also, Aldo just beat Brown so an immediate title wasn't likely. I'd consider Faber #3 in the division right now. As such, it does make sense.

It seems a little quick to me too that he gets another title shot after just one win but this is how I see it. It's still a great match up though. If Aldo can catch him with a good shot he has the power to finish it, but he doesn't have nearly Faber's experience and we don't know how he'll perform if it goes into the championship rounds.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Jamie Varner's intel turned out to be wrong in his title unification fight with Ben Henderson.

The former WEC lightweight champion, who lives a short drive from the Glendale, Ariz.- based Henderson in Phoenix, said he had received information that the newly crowed champ had hired a boxing coach and was looking to bang at Sunday's WEC 46 event.

But when the fight started, everything changed.

"I was expecting him to try and trade punches with me," he told MMAJunkie after the main-event bout, which took place at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif. "That wasn't the case, but he had a good gameplan. He used his kick to keep me away, and I guess that's the M.O. on me: use your kicks to keep me away. That way I don't have to touch you."

But despite a yearlong layoff due to a broken hand and foot, Varner said he felt sharp during the championship bout.

When Henderson didn't come out guns blazing, Varner felt his options whittle away in the second round, and he shot in for a takedown. He caught a hard knee that took him off balance long enough for Henderson to slap on the fight-ending guillotine choke.

Varner had heard about the choke, too, but couldn't react fast enough to put up much of a struggle.

"It was underneath my chin, and it was in," he said. "I knew. I couldn't fight the hands. As soon as I couldn't get my hands on there and stop that, I knew I was done. I started going out. I was trying at first, and then it was done. He had it in."

The former champion did not recant post-fight statements that implied cowardice on the part of Henderson—more ammunition for the haters he has addressed often—though he commended the new champion's performance and placed blame squarely on himself.

He was just mad he left his neck out for the choke.

"I just wish I wouldn't have had my head down," Varner said. "That's about the only thing that was going through my mind. I felt good. Ring rust was not a problem. I felt good. I felt sharp. I was hitting hard in the back. I felt great. I felt really good. It was just the timing. I had my head in the wrong spot at the wrong time."

Varner, who met his first defeat since August 2006, was at a loss for what to do next with his career.

"I've got so many emotions going through my head right now," he said. "It's been a long time since I lost. The last time I lost was to Hermes (Franca at UFC 62), and it made me a much better fighter. If I can get better from this, I don't know.

"There's a lot of guys that are in line, and I wouldn't mind fighting a Shane Roller. I wouldn't mind fighting Donald (Cerrone) again, but I think Donald's probably the No. 1 contender. I don't know where to go. It's up to the WEC, but I need to go back home, really work on some stuff, fix up my game and get better."

One thing was certain: the boos that showered him after his loss were not going to deter him from moving on. If he had to be the villain, so be it.

"You win some and you lose some, man," Varner said. "I feel that a lot of fans can be fickle. Had I gone out there and knocked Ben out, I think a lot of them would have loved me. But I lost, and it happens. No matter what, I come to fight. They can at least appreciate that."

Man, this guy really sucks! Hiring a boxing coach doesn't mean that your opponent is going to "stand and bang" with you. Sounds like an excuse because he probably been receiving a lot of heat for it. His way of apologizing without actually apologizing. His comments after the fight explicitly imply that Henderson was less of a fighter for "grappling" then Varner is for coming to "fight". As previously mentioned, lets also keep in mind that he attempted a Guillotine choke as well and held on to that sucker for quite a while.

I could see him saying that in the heat of the moment with emotions being what they are after a loss. However, he's had to to think about it and this is what he comes up with...

It's also quite interesting how he seems to think his boxing is such the ****. I do like how he mentioned his Hermes Franca loss. In this particular match, he was actually getting outstruck on the feet but was using his wrestling and top control (read: grappling) to win the fight, you know, until he was submitted. Of course I'm sure he was there to fight in that match as well and not "grapple".

I guess he's trying to be the Brock Lesner of the WEC's lightweight division.

Last edited by datdamnmachine; 1/11/2010 4:49pm at .
Reason: To remove additional links from the article

It was a great card all around. I'm impressed with Shalarus; he needs to refine his strikikng but if he does he has the potential to be a beast. Hominick's arm bar was pretty slick too- I thought he was just going to get pounded out. I was happy to see Brown looking good, and I was thrilled that both Faber and Henderson were able to finish their opponents.
Tonight set the stage for some great match ups; Faber vs. Aldo has the makings of a classic and I can't wait to see the Cerrone-Henderson rematch. Of course, we get to see Bowles defend his title as well as the return of Torres before that. It's a great time to be a fight fan.

I'm not sure I agree with you here. Who do you think is more deserving?

Manny. Do I think he stands a chance of beating Aldo, let alone MTB or Faber? No. But, Urijah has one win since losing to Brown for the second time. Brown just got destroyed by Aldo before being handed a gimme fight. Yes, Faber makes more sense in terms of marketing, but we can't keep having the same 3 guys fighting each other over and over.

Hell, the WEC had to bring in Mizugaki from Japan when Torres cleaned out the division. They need to bring some new blood into the featherweights, too.

Manny. Do I think he stands a chance of beating Aldo, let alone MTB or Faber? No. But, Urijah has one win since losing to Brown for the second time. Brown just got destroyed by Aldo before being handed a gimme fight. Yes, Faber makes more sense in terms of marketing, but we can't keep having the same 3 guys fighting each other over and over.

Hell, the WEC had to bring in Mizugaki from Japan when Torres cleaned out the division. They need to bring some new blood into the featherweights, too.

Unfortunately, those guys they were bringing in from Japan have faltered royally. Also, Manny, just like Okami in the UFC and probably Maynard as well, aren't going to put butts in the seats with their style of fighting. Faber and Brown will.

After his win over Garcia Gamburyan is defininely a contender. I don't think he'll get the belt but you've got a point that he's just about due for a shot. In all fairness to Faber though, he was an extremely dominant champ and his 2nd fight with Brown was a classic. Sure he's a fan favorite but if he's getting an easy break over an unproven new comer it's because he's paid his dues.

*edit* If they can I'd love to see them bring in more talent into the division though. That means more good fights which is good for everyone.

After his win over Garcia Gamburyan is defininely a contender. I don't think he'll get the belt but you've got a point that he's just about due for a shot. In all fairness to Faber though, he was an extremely dominant champ and his 2nd fight with Brown was a classic. Sure he's a fan favorite but if he's getting an easy break over an unproven new comer it's because he's paid his dues.

*edit* If they can I'd love to see them bring in more talent into the division though. That means more good fights which is good for everyone.

Another reason could be the fact that putting Manny against Faber would potentially weaken a Faber/Aldo superfight if Manny wins. This could also set up Manny vs Brown but I think they may want to give Manny a few more guys and then let him go after Aldo (if Aldo beats Faber, then Brown again) for a fresh championship bout.

I've found that tying to figure out who is the number 1 contender for UFC/WEC is quite difficult. Especially in deep divisions where person A beats person B but loses to person C who gets beat by person B...yadda, yadda, yadda.

Unfortunately, those guys they were bringing in from Japan have faltered royally. Also, Manny, just like Okami in the UFC and probably Maynard as well, aren't going to put butts in the seats with their style of fighting. Faber and Brown will.

Mizugaki gave Torres the fight of his life (at least until Brian Bowles came along) and that fight was an instant classic. He beat Curran and lost to Jorgensen, no shame in that and hardly what you would call faltering royally.

I understand Faber and Brown will put butts in seats. I'm not arguing this from the business point of view, I'm arguing what's fair.